World Blood Donor Day 2022: History, theme and specific goals for this year

 World Blood Donor Day 2022: History, theme and specific goals for this year

World Blood Donor Day is observed annually on June 14 with an aim to raise awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products for transfusion. The day also honours the crucial contribution that voluntary, unpaid blood donors to save lives. World Blood Donor Day provides an opportunity to encourage governments and health authorities to provide adequate resources to increase the collection of blood from voluntary, unpaid blood donors. Every day millions of lives are saved by transfusion performed with safe blood and blood products.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated 'Donating blood is an act of solidarity. Join the effort and save lives, as the slogan and theme for this year's Blood Donor Day. The campaign aims to draw attention to the roles that voluntary blood donations play in saving lives and enhancing solidarity within communities.

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Mexico will host World Blood Donor Day 2022 through its National Blood Centre in Mexico City on 14 June 2022.

History and Significance of the day

World Blood Donor Day marks the birth anniversary of Karl Landsteiner (born on June 14, 1868). He was awarded the Nobel Prize for his great contribution to health science by discovering the ABO blood group system. This event was first initiated by the WHO along with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies on June 14, 2004. The day was established with an aim to raise public awareness about the need for safe blood donation voluntarily by healthy persons. In May 2005, the WHO with its 192 member states officially established World Blood Donor Day at the 58th World Health Assembly

The necessity for blood is universal and the low and middle-income countries often experience blood shortages, leading to deaths. World Blood Donor Day is an initiative taken by the WHO to support national blood transfusion services and blood donor organisations in strengthening and expanding their voluntary blood donor programmes.

The specific objectives of this year's campaign are:

Thank blood donors around the world and create public awareness of the need for regular, unpaid blood donations.

Highlight the need for committed, year round blood donation drives to maintain adequate supplies to achieve universal and

Thank blood donors around the world and create public awareness of the need for regular, unpaid blood donations.

Highlight the need for committed, year round blood donation drives to maintain adequate supplies to achieve universal and timely access to safe blood transfusion.

Raise awareness of the need for increased investment and support from governments to build a national blood system and increase collection.

Another activity that the WHO encourages is to disseminate stories of people whose lives have been saved through blood donation as a way of motivating people to continue or start donating blood.